Chapter 72

Xiaoming stood at the classroom door, took a deep breath, and firmly gripped the secret letter from his mother.

---

In the wind, cherry blossoms danced, and Misaki opened the old diary and read the words of promise written there.

---

"…Did you look like an angel? That pickpocket just now?"

"Yeah."

"Is there an angel who would say 'Go to hell'?"

"There could be."

"Hey, Togo, are you okay?"

"Yeah."

I'm really fine.

That kid was really an angel. I really want to draw her.

"Her eyes were like the blue sky, angelic. They were the eyes of an angel wary of humans. And, I think her face was very beautiful. An angel. Her hair was dirty, but I think it was a bit wavy. I think she would look really angelic if she washed it properly. She would be perfect with a halo on her head."

"You really observed her well! Even after being pickpocketed!"

If there was an angel right in front of you, wouldn't anyone look? Angels over wallets.

"…What do we do? If we really catch her, it won't be easy."

"Yeah. No matter how you think about it… Togo. Let's go to the slave market once? There might be someone more angelic. What do you think?"

Hmm… Yeah. I understand.

Street children, like that kid. They probably don't have a fixed address, and they're very quick. It would definitely be difficult to search for them in this vast capital. I understand.

So… Hmm.

"Alright. Let's go to the slave market…"

…With a lingering feeling, I decided to go to the slave market.

"…Don't look so down."

"You look like a withered plant…"

Yeah…

---

The slave market in the capital was huge. It was impressive, I guess. Amazing.

"I want an angel!"

"We only deal with human slaves here…"

"Um, someone as close to an angel as possible, please!"

"Oh, I see…"

Then, right after entering and having a brief conversation, the store staff brought some models.

"How about these?"

The models they brought were… amazing. They were completely different from the slave market in the Redgard territory. After all, the number was huge. The number of models brought at once was incredibly large.

From beautiful women to cute children. So many. There were so many.

"How about it, Togo? Do you like any of them?"

"Hmm…"

…However, while looking at the many models, something was… lacking.

The beautiful women here still had a demonic aura. There were some who looked like fairy princesses, but they didn't seem angelic. I don't know what was missing, and I also felt like drawing some of these people… but they weren't angels. Yeah.

Then, the children were even more noticeable.

They didn't seem angelic at all.

I mean, there were some who looked like they could be in an 'angel painting,' but they were not angels at all… they looked like dolls. They were smiling and had faces that said 'Buy me quickly! Buy me quickly!' and were very friendly…

…These kids would never pickpocket or say 'Go to hell.' Yeah. They didn't seem wary of humans and didn't seem capable of giving blessings.

"How about it? Did you find anyone good?"

"…No one seems to say 'Go to hell.'"

"Wait, wait, wait. Angels don't say 'Go to hell' in the first place."

Is that so? I feel like they would. After all, they are wary of humans… and if they were a bit hungry, they might pickpocket…

Then, the store staff brought other models.

This time, it included handsome young men. But… well, they weren't angels.

There were people who looked like sages, princesses, queens, princes, fairies, and many more. There were more demons, and when it came to children, there were a lot of dolls… but no angels.

Someone who is wary of humans, a bit cheeky, and still captivating. There was no one like that.

…After that, I was shown the store's pride and joy, 'angelic slaves,' but there were no angelic models.

Hmm…

---

Seeing the store staff start to look a bit troubled, I also began to feel a bit apologetic. Coming here when I had a specific angel in mind might have been rude.

But, catching that alley angel is not realistic…

…While thinking about that.

"…Fey. I think I have to make up my mind."

Laocles said to Fey.

"Yeah, I had that feeling too…"

Fey also said, nodding in resignation.

"…Togo. Are you going to make up your mind too?"

"Huh?"

I was surprised, and Fey leaned in, whispering in my ear.

"It's the angel capture operation. …Let's catch that alley angel. Otherwise, you won't be satisfied, right?"

"…Yeah. I'll catch her. I want to catch her!"

"Wow, you look completely different from before."

"You look like a plant that has been watered."

Capture! Capture that angel! Catch her, take her to the forest, and draw her!

…Once I started thinking about it, I suddenly felt motivated! Thank you!

---

We paid the store staff for showing us various models and left. We might come back if we want to draw dolls, fairy princesses, or a large group of demons.

After paying a 'thank you' equivalent to one model, the store staff became very happy and saw us off. Yeah, thank you for your future cooperation.

…Well.

"What do we do from here? I have no idea about this kind of thing."

"Neither do I. …It's probably closer to Crea's expertise."

That's right. Crea is from the underworld, so… she might be good at catching alley angels.

"Well, we can't bring Crea. We have to do this our way…"

Fey said, looking at me, Laocles, and himself… and nodded.

"Alright. Let's use Togo as bait to catch an angel."

…Huh?

"One-on-one fishing"

"Yeah. One-on-one fishing. …You look like a good target, don't you?"

Yeah. …Huh? I feel like I just got insulted.

"You don't look like you have money, but you're well-dressed, lack caution, and are especially absent-minded. You're a pickpocket's dream target."

…Given that I was targeted by a pickpocket earlier, I can't really argue.

"You should look more like you have money. And be cautious… like a noble's son on a sightseeing trip."

That's a tough request. What does 'like a noble's son on a sightseeing trip' even mean? Is it like Fey's walk? No, Fey isn't absent-minded. No, I'm not absent-minded either.

"Alright. Togo, let's start by making you look like bait!"

…But, it's fine. I've made up my mind.

If using me as bait can catch an angel, I'll be bait no matter what.

And I will definitely catch an angel and take her back! Take her back and draw her! Definitely!

---

…After that, my shopping began.

Usually, I wear a uniform shirt, pants, boots with weapons hidden inside, and a bag… but this time, my shirt was a light blue one with embroidery and more fabric, and my pants were slim-fit. I also had a vest with a swallowtail and a loop tie made of polished mother-of-pearl.

…And most importantly, the bag. The bag was designed to be easy to pickpocket. It would probably make me very popular with pickpockets. Probably.

"Alright! You look like someone with money, no caution, and absent-minded!"

I feel like I'm being insulted, but it can't be helped. It's for catching an angel.

Even if I catch a pickpocket who isn't an angel, I might be able to get information about the angel. Yeah. This is a great idea.

"Alright, Togo. Pretend to be unreliable and wander around! Fey and Laocles will watch from a distance!"

"Okay. I think I'll be fine. I have the pipe fox with me."

I stroked the bamboo tube in my pocket, and a cheerful 'kon' sound came from inside. I'm counting on you.

---

…So, I started wandering around the back alleys alone.

Of course, just wandering around would be boring, so I looked at various shops. I remember being asked to do an errand at one of the back alley shops. I'll do that after catching the angel.

"There are so many different shops."

The back alleys lack the glamour of the main streets. They give the impression of being places that want to stay hidden. The slave market is like that, and the weapon shops probably are too. The shop that sells medicine… well, maybe I shouldn't think about that.

I looked at these shops while wandering around…

…There she was.

The person just lightly bumped into me. But if I had been paying attention, I would have noticed that my wallet was taken at the moment of the collision.

Then.

"Alright! That's enough, pickpocket!"

"If you stay still, I won't take your life."

The pickpocket was very surprised when Fey and Laocles suddenly appeared from the shadows. Well, of course.

…There was a slight 'kon' sound from my pocket. Yeah, you didn't get to help…

Of course, this pickpocket was a miss. Not an angel. Just a pickpocket.

But even a regular pickpocket is worth catching. After all, the angel was also a pickpocket. They might know each other.

"Hey, do you know a kid with sky-blue eyes around here?"

"Huh?"

When Fey asked the pickpocket, the pickpocket looked confused.

…So, I quietly gave him a silver coin. Immediately, his expression tightened, and he straightened up.

"I'm looking for that kid. Do you know where they are or their name?"

"Well, I think I've seen them…"

He was troubled. Probably, he didn't know or didn't remember well. But since he received a silver coin, he might feel the need to give an answer.

"I won't ask you to return it if you don't know. It's fine."

So, I said that, and he clearly relaxed. As expected.

"Sorry, I don't usually remember kids' faces. But I usually hang out in the west, and there are no kids around there."

I see. Well, 'not there' is also important information.

"I see. Thank you."

"O-Okay. Sorry I couldn't tell you more…"

The pickpocket said this a bit apologetically and quietly left. …Ah.

"Return the wallet."

"…Really?"

The pickpocket, shrinking under Laocles' grip, returned my wallet and slunk away. Yeah. Be careful on your way back.

---

After that, I caught a few more pickpockets. Men, women, and children.

As I gathered information from them, I gradually got a sense of where the angel might be.

…And then.

"Sky-blue eyes…? Do you mean Ceres?"

Finally, the child pickpocket I caught gave me the angel's name!

"Ceres? That kid is named Ceres?"

"No, I don't know if it's the one you're looking for! But there's a cheeky kid who recently came into my territory. They definitely have sky-blue eyes. They're called Ceres."

…This is valuable information. Wonderful.

"Hey, where can I find that kid?"

When I asked, the captured child pickpocket smiled and told me.

"In the evening, they hang around near the slave market. That's the best time to catch them."

"Slave market?"

Laocles looked a bit surprised. Yeah, it might be a bit surprising. It's hard to imagine a pickpocketing kid buying models… but maybe that's why. I've also wandered around things I couldn't afford.

"Yeah. They definitely hang around near the slave market. …If you don't believe me, that's fine too."

"No. Thank you."

This is the best information we have so far. It's almost evening, so it's worth believing.

"Here, this is a thank you."

So, I gave the child a small silver coin and let them go. The child ran off happily. If they were happy, that's great.

---

Following the information, we decided to stake out around the slave market. Fey hid near the entrance, Laocles hid in an alley on the main street side, and I… wandered around the slave market. In other words, I was the bait.

…While I wandered around or stood there dazed from walking, I suddenly saw a figure at the edge of my vision.

I casually looked over, and they were also casually looking at me.

…It's the angel!

"Capture her!"

When I said that, the pipe fox jumped out.

Seeing this, the angel looked startled and tried to run, but the pipe fox was very fast. It caught up, barking, and blocked the angel's path.

The angel was stopped, but instantly changed direction and tried to escape in another direction…

…But then, Laocles ran.

He was fast. Very fast. With all his muscles working, he was incredibly fast. And the pressure was intense.

"Ah!"

Of course, catching a single child was easy. Laocles is amazing! What a physique!